BISCOTTI

Pellegrino Artusi joked that his good health was owed to these cookies, hence the name 'biscuits of health'. Made with flour, eggs, sugar and little bit of butter, they are healthy when consumed in moderation, which is Artusi's rule of thumb: in the preface of La scienza in cucina e l' arte di mangiar bene he advised readers to eat only if they were hungry. But, are his cookies beneficial for our health (and waistline) by today's standards?

Cover of the first edition, 1891

Regional cuisines from the north of Italy, including Emilia-Romagna and Tuscany where Artusi lived, were largely influenced by French cooking. Even the use of typically Mediterranean ingredients (olive oil, tomatoes, anchovies etc.) was limited in Florence when it came to official dinners. The irony was that several of the French recipes used by the local chefs had been adapted from Italian dishes. These had been introduced to Paris by Catherine de' Medici who married the French Dauphin (later King Henri II) in 1533. The dishes that re-entered the kitchen of northern Italy were made of ingredients available in France and, of course, with animal fat. That's why most of Artusi's recipes -including soups, sauces, and stews- use butter.

Yet, not every chef in Tuscany was influenced by French cuisine. Antonio Mattei, whose enterprise is still flourishing today in Prato & also happened to be Artusi's great friend, continued the tradition of fatless biscuits that were produced in Tuscany since the Middle Ages. (The word cantuccio was officially included in the Vocabolario degli Academia della Crusca as late as 1691: "biscotto a fette, di fior di farina, con zucchero e chiara d' uovo.") Butter, egg yolks, milk & yeast was strictly forbidden in the original recipe. Mattei began to sell his version of cantucci in 1858 and it soon became a classic that made Italy famous: 'biscotti di Prato' were brought to the International Exhibition of 1867 in Paris, alongside other regional specialties.

 

Tuscany with Prato in the 16th century

Napoleon III at the International Exposition of 1867

The original cantucci were very light in texture so they could be dipped in vin Santo. They were 100% fat-free and would have been a great option for anyone who cared about their figure. Yet, that was not Artusi's problem. Although ladies of his time strove for narrow waistlines to keep up with Victorian beauty standards, he seemed to be more concerned with quantity than quality. Sugar, butter or egg yolks were not excluded from his recipes. And why should they, given the lack of consensus among food experts of all time regarding the stuff we must avoid for best results in health checks: fat, sugars or both.

orange-flavored biscotti

biscotti di Prato

BISCOTTI DELLA SALUTE

This is exactly Artusi's recipe with only minor changes: I used 3/5 olive oil instead of butter, orange juice instead of milk and grated orange peel in addition to vanilla.

I n g r e d i e n t s

350g plain flour
2tsp cream of tartar
1tsp baking soda
1tbsp vanilla sugar
2tbsp grated orange peel
2 large eggs
100g brown sugar
30ml extra virgin olive oil
50ml orange juice

M e t h o d

1. Preheat the oven to 200C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 2. Sift the flour and cream of tartar in a bowl. Add the vanilla sugar and grated orange peel. 3. Beat the eggs with the sugar and olive oil. 4. Combine both mixtures, gradually adding the orange juice. 5. Knead the dough lightly on a floured surface. Divide in two and shape into loaves. 6. Place on the baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes or until firm. 7. Let cool on a wire rack for several hours. (Artusi suggests waiting until the next day). Then use a sharp knife to slice the loaves diagonally. 8. Place the slices on 1-2 baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake at 100C for 40-50 minutes or in a cooling oven until completely dry. 9. Store in a biscuit tin and eat in moderation. 


V a r i a t i o n: BISCOTTI DI PRATO

Despite Artusi's good opinion of Mattei's skill, there is no version of the famous recipe in his book. My attempts to make cantucci in the way I thought Antonio Mattei would have done, ie. taking out from Artusi's recipe every trace of fat, including milk, resulted in a very hard cookie. To avoid this, I suggest using Artusi's original ingredients (butter, eggs & little bit of milk) taking care to omit the yolks. Substitute 1tbsp Amaretto for vanilla sugar and mix the final dough with 100g almonds in their skins.